Having made his way out of the marketplace and back towards the Plaza, Dharen took the chance to cautiously slip his newest acquisition onto a finger of his left hand.

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“Charismatic Draw”

Ring Type

Imbued with a mixture Fear and Loneliness soulseed dust, this ring preys upon the mental weaknesses of others. Laces the wearer’s words with magic, causing those who listen to be more likely to desire the wearer’s company.

Functions by constantly drawing off of the wearer’s Spirit regeneration.

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Dharen felt a twist from within his Seeds, a painful pull that sent his mind into a haze. Before it could progress any further, Dharen ripped the ring from his finger. As he stored it in his Spatial Ring, he felt his mind grow clear once more.

He sighed. As hopeful as he had been that it would turn out otherwise, the ring easily overpowered his low Wisdom and sent him into a Spirit degeneration state. He had always worried about this drawback of a Wisdom reduction seed. Though more popularly seen in Rage Seeds, the same principles of Spirit degeneration applied to his own Triumph Seed as well. Though he managed to avoid many of the difficulties inherent in low Wisdom and hence low Spirit regeneration by simply having twice the Spirit pool as he should, it seemed that he was unable to make it through completely unscathed.

The Spirit degeneration state was one caused by overwhelming the body’s ability to regenerate spirit. While one might expect that this would only result in a constant drain on one’s Spirit pool, it was nowhere near something so simple.

Instead, it was reported that Spirit degeneration was far more incapacitating. Though it initially presented as a mental fugue, a minor haze, it could progress significantly further. At later stages, it prevented the mind from properly connecting with the body; some particularly aggressive and powerful Rage Seeds had even famously been kept restrained through inducing Spirit degeneration. After suffering from Spirit degeneration for a long enough period, they had been unable to break free even when left unguarded and unbound.

Now that he had confirmed that he was susceptible, Dharen was sure to be cautious in the future.

After some time, Dharen reached his destination. Just as in the day before, the Plaza was bustling with activity. Groups of confident, and some not quite so confident, adventurers queued up to select their quests from the noticeboard. Taking a moment to watch, Dharen was able to pick out the telltale sign of the desperate and the despairing. It was those who were at risk of being laid low, whether by the Contribution tax or their own foolhardiness.

He supposed he was being too harsh. After all, it was only yesterday that he had nearly died in his own foolhardy mission. It had turned out for the best in the end, but he was aware that things could have quite easily gone another way. With that in mind, he approached the noticeboard.

Alone this time, he elected to focus on relatively simple quests. There was no need to take risks similar to the day prior; not only should he not expect for things to go smoothly at all times, but he had no real need to obtain a large number of Contribution Points at the moment.

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Dharen returned through the teleporter once more in a flash of arcane light, appearing within the Plaza. He had chosen to take on a series of five missions, each offering a reward of 20 Contribution Vouchers. It was a far cry from the 2,000 Voucher reward for defeating Keljier, but it was also notably more relaxed.

He approached what he had begun referring to as the Voucher Golem, handing in his various completed notices simultaneously. All in all, he received 100 Contribution Vouchers for his efforts. A fairly satisfactory result, given that he had taken things carefully.

He took his Vouchers in hand, ripping them in twain and absorbing the released energy.

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Contribution Added:

+500 Points

Remaining Contribution Points: 1,755

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Dharen suspected that most would choose to work safely and slowly on their Contribution Points. It was likely only the others’ desperation and his own naivete that resulted in challenging such a singularly difficult mission. While the reward for defeating Keljier was astronomically high, it was also split between a relatively large group, dropping the 10,000 Contribution Point reward down to 2,500 per person.

Even so, he could see the appeal in challenging difficult missions with the right group composition and a certain level of power. It had taken quite a while to complete the missions needed for 500 Contribution Points, even when taking into account that he had the equivalent attributes of two people combined into one. A note for the future, perhaps.

With the sun having already set and dusk soon to arrive, Dharen quickly forged his way through the streets of the city anew. He retraced his steps to the Market District, and soon arrived at his destination. Having seen an armorer earlier in the day, Dharen chose to drop off his well-worn gear for some quick repairs. He left the armorer, a breeze rustling his now-unencumbered clothing and began to make his way back to the inn.

In front of the inn awaited a sight that could only leave Dharen startled.

Just to the side of the inn, a carriage awaited. The promised transportation to the Vezian Alliance’s meeting. He had not seen any carriages in the city prior; only foot traffic had traveled through the city streets. And yet, it was not the sight of a carriage that left him stunned. It was the type of carriage. A Wanderlust Carriage.

Unimaginably expensive, Wanderlust Carriages were quite rare even in the wealthiest of circles. This was mostly due to the rarity of the soulseed required to enchant them.

Wanderlust Seeds were a highly uncommon Awakening amongst monsters. In fact, they were typically confined to one particular species of avian monster: a Viator.

In all of his life, Dharen had only witnessed a wild Viator once. It had been a spectacle for the entire city, for as short as the moment lasted. The raven-feathered creature had flown over Yraos with blinding speed, showering the city in a dusting of gently falling feathers. It was only by dint of its massive size, and by the feathers left with its passage, that it was noticed at all. It had only been visible for a moment, and then it was gone.

Dharen had always been struck by that memory of raven-black feathers falling gently upon the city. Of a city enthralled, not by a monster’s power, but by its majesty. He couldn’t help but wonder what the presence of Viators meant. What the presence of a monster that lived only to wander, rather than to kill, meant. Whether there was more to the world than they knew. Yet, throughout all of humanity’s kingdoms monsters were unequivocally treated as a menace, and it was understandable why. In the long annals of history, humans had forever struggled with the horrors of dangerous monsters running rampant.

The teachings of the Progenitor’s Church were quite clear, as well. Though they did not agree on everything, each of the four branches of the Church held true to one tenet: Unchecked, monsters would soon run rampant once more, sending humanity scattering to the hidden corners of the world. It was only through constant vigilance that safety was assured. Truthfully, Dharen had never been much of one for the Church. Still, it was undebatable that the Progenitors were real figures, given the presence of the Tower and its Blessings. Thus, he was hesitant to discount the warnings they provided.

Even so, he couldn’t help but look back at the majesty of the passing Viator with a certain admiration. Personally, he had always thought that there was more room for coexistence than the Church led humanity to believe. It was true that the vast majority of monsters were exceedingly dangerous, but it was also a fact that humans could be as well. There were bound to be exceptions.

After all, even the Del were clearly some form of monster. Intelligent, perhaps. But monsters, certainly. Yet, they were not primitive savages, driven only by instincts and the desire for destruction as the Church claimed all monsters were. Based on the journal that he had found, not only could they read and write, but they had created a full civilization before their demise.

He almost wondered what might have happened, had he been able to communicate with them before their home had been lost.

Dharen approached the carriage. A man stood at attention by its side. As he grew closer, the man nodded politely.

“Dharen, I presume?” the man respectfully questioned. After receiving Dharen’s confirmation, he motioned for him to enter the Wanderlust Carriage. Dharen pulled himself into the transport, taking his seat among the plush cushions within. The man pulled himself into the driver’s section afterwards, placing his hand upon the Carriage’s soulseed. It gently rolled, accelerating smoothly as it went. In no time at all, they had arrived at the Vezian Spire. True to form, the Wanderlust Carriage had displayed peerless comfort and transportation ability, able to autonomously traverse myriad distances safely and effectively through the activation of its Seed.

Dharen took his exit from the carriage, thanking the man for his consideration. He turned towards the twisted tower once more, and took his first step into the Spire of the Vezian Alliance.